1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of curtain gathering devices in general, and in particular to a gathering device for use on sliding glass doors to gather vertical blind panels.
2. Description of Related Art
As can be seen by reference to the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,903,370; 5,040,266; 5,428,867; and 5,517,722, the prior art is replete with myriad and diverse curtain gathering or holding devices.
While all of the aforementioned prior art constructions are more than adequate for the basic purpose and function for which they have been specifically designed, they are uniformly deficient with respect to their failure to provide a simple, efficient, and practical device for temporarily gathering vertical blinds in the vicinity of a sliding glass door.
As anyone who is familiar with vertical blind construction can readily attest, there is no current practical solution for dealing with the vertical blind panels in the vicinity of sliding glass doors other than to retract the blinds a substantial distance beyond the opening created by the door to prevent the blind panels from rattling against one another due to the passage of wind through the door opening.
As a consequence of the foregoing situation, there has existed a longstanding need for a new and improved sliding glass door construction that incorporates therein a vertical blind holder apparatus that gathers and restrains the vertical blind panels that are normally suspended across the opening formed by the door. The provision of such a construction is a stated objective of the present invention.